(originally published as a newsletter on our company Linkedin Page)
In a world fascinated by Artificial Intelligence, and increasingly dominated by online commerce, it is interested to note that recent research shows we still yearn for a human connection in business.
In fact, PWC recently reported that 75% of consumers would still choose to interact with a real person even as the technology for automated solutions improves. In another study by Microsoft, 95% of consumers said that customer service is essential for brand loyalty, and 60% of consumers report having deserted a brand and switching to a rival company because of poor customer service.
These sentiments show that there are still avenues where brick-and-mortar retailers can be successful if they will only turn to their most important assets - themselves and their staff.
Sure online commerce is growing, and was last reported to be above 25% of all sales, but even in online commerce companies, there appears to be a need to invest in personal, human customer service, rather than FAQs and chatbots.
Personally, I'm delighted to see these figures, because it proves once again that people do business with people. They might be happy to transact with a computer, but when the rubber hits the road and the important things need to be discussed, then human to human connections come to the fore.
Not that we should be surprised. Its just that we can sometimes get so fascinated by tools and technology that we forget they are there to support our business, and manage data and do the mundane things whilst we focus on the human connections.
This way our business and our tools work for us, and work to support a great customer experience, not get in the way of it.
I'm currently preparing a presentation for an in-person workshop for local retailers in late October.
I'll be taking this theme to the presentation and working with attendees to help them find ways where they can add value to their customers, improve trust and delight and therefore build loyalty and lifetime customer value.
In the meantime go find a human you work with, or a customer and tell them how much you value them. It will mean the world to them.
If you'd like to discuss your marketing, your value or how human interactions can make a difference to your business, feel free to set up a no-obligation and complimentary chat on my calendly link - https://calendly.com/hunterleonard
Cheers and do well
Hunter
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